"Intriguing Paranormal Anthology!"
Merlin's Eye by Ellen Ashe: Roger is a scoundrel and always has been. He is in the
business of antique books and manuscripts and always gets
what he wants by whatever means available. Having been
offered a Druid book, Roger simply cannot pass up the
opportunity to have it. It will make a wonderful addition
to his collection, especially since Druids never wrote
anything themselves. This wonderful book is being offered
to him by Victoria Elwell, the sole heiress to the Elwell
fortune. Her father was a world renown collector and Roger
just can't wait to see his library! Finally arriving in
England, he's met by a butler and taken to the Elwell
estate. On the way there, he dozes and has a strange,
erotic dream. Victoria Elwell is determined to get this book and will use
any means necessary to do so, even if it means blackmailing
Roger into helping her. As a Wiccan witch, Victoria uses
her power to make Roger dream with the aid of her amulet,
Merlin's Eye. Supposedly, this amulet dates back to the
time of Merlin. When she meets Roger, she once again uses
Merlin's Eye to put him into a trance, where it is revealed
to her he is a descendant of the God Branewor, the Hunter.
He is perfect for her purposes! Of course, unknown to
Victoria, her confidant, Leena, has plans for the two of
them herself, and none of them are good. Is there really a Druid Book Of Verses? Can it really
exist? Will Roger help Victoria obtain this rare find?
Exactly what are Leena's nefarious plans? Is Roger really a
descendant of Branewor? "MERLIN'S EYE" is a fascinating look into the world of
Wicca. Ellen Ashe offers us a very intriguing look into the
time of the ancient Druids in this story as well as we
learn the tale of Branewor. We have three very different
characters in this story. To begin with, we have Roger,
materialistic, never letting the opportunity for a rare
book, or a beautiful woman, pass him by. Then we have
Victoria, a spiritualist, born with a silver spoon and
never wanting for anything. Add to the mix Leena, a woman
who came from poverty and never plans to experience it
again. All these characters lead us into an interesting
chase for the elusive Druid Book Of Verses. If you enjoy
mystery and ancient lore mixed into your stories, you don't
want to miss this one! Sixth Day of the Moon by Celia Ashley: Moira is at an archaeological dig in Ireland. Sensing a
storm approaching, she decides to keep working. She feels
something and very gently, digs it up. The object turns out
to be gold and shaped like a curved sickle. It's about the
size of her hand and she believes it's supposed to
represent the moon at the sixth day of its cycle. She even
finds inscriptions on it, predating most of the other
objects found at the site. When she glances around, Moira
finds everyone else trying to get everything under a tarp
and getting under cover. Just as she decides to join them,
she looks up and everything goes black. When she wakes up, her clothing has been all but ruined.
Her pants wouldn't even quality as Daisy Dukes at this
point, and her tee shirt is showing more than it's
covering. Not to mention, she's covered in soot. Looking
around, Moira can see nothing familiar. Instead of the dig,
there are trees, and they are huge! There's no hope for it,
Moira is going to have to walk and find help. Hitting the
top of the hill, Moira still can't see anything familiar.
As she's walking along, she hears someone coming. Riders on
horseback. Based on their mode of dress, Moira has the
feeling the men on ponies must be in some kind of
reenactment. When they speak to her, not only can she
understand their ancient language, she can respond in the
same tongue! How did Moira end up here? Where and when exactly is here?
Will Moira ever get home again? What of the prince who
rescues her? Exactly what happened when Moira was hit by
lightening? "SIXTH DAY OF THE MOON" is a wonderful time travel romance.
Celia Ashley keeps the plot moving at a fast pace and we
quickly become caught up in Moira's story. Having survived
the lightening strike, Moira isn't about to give up and
goes through quite a bit of danger to stay alive. The
scenery is all very realistically described, the action is
non-stop, and the characters all remain true to themselves.
This is a wonderful addition to the RELIC anthology. Lord of the Night by Annalee Blysse: Professor Roberta "Camille" Baron decided to take her
honeymoon trip anyway, even though she has no groom.
Especially since this is one place she's always wanted to
visit, Tulum, the area her grandfather spent so much time
in researching the Mayans. Even though Camille has chosen a
different field of study entirely, astronomy, she has still
always wanted to see this area. One morning, Camille runs
across a man. He invites her to dine at his house. Camille
declines the invitation. When a driver shows up at her
house, she decides to go. Shad goes to all the tourist
attractions with Camille, even an open-air market, where
she buys something for her grandfather. A staff with a
jaguar on top and mysterious writing on it. When Camille
decides to surprise Shad with an unannounced visit, she
finds him occupied with a woman and another man! Deciding
to cut her vacation short, Camille goes back home. Shad can't believe this woman he has found and immediately
claims her. When she disappears, Shad goes back home and
sends his little brother Merrick to find her. When Camille gives the staff to her grandfather, he
immediately berates her. It turns out the relic isn't a
copy at all, but the real deal. Once he manages to
translate the writing on the staff, her grandfather has
proof his theory being real after all. The jaguar gods the
Mayans believed in were real! They are shape shifting
aliens from another planet coming to Earth and the Mayans
worshipped them. Camille puts up a web site for her
grandfather and that's when the trouble begins. She starts
receiving all kinds of threats, right down to waking up
with a jaguar in her bed! Who is the mysterious Shad Camille met in Mexico? Are there
really shape shifting aliens coming to Earth? What of the
jaguar in Camille's bed? "LORDS OF THE NIGHT" provides us with an intriguing look
into the civilization of an alien planet. Annalee Blysse
has done a wonderful job with this story. The action keeps
us turning the pages right up until the very last one. And
I love the part where Camille teaches Merrick how to surf.
The characters are all very realistic and remain true to
themselves. This is one story you don't want to miss! Curse of the Cat's Paw by Tracy L. Ranson: The whole way to Scotland, Jamie VanWell is thinking of the
reason for her trip. Way back in the days of "Longshanks,"
king of England, land was given to Jamie's family in
Scotland, displacing the current Laird. And ever since the
sole surviving Munro gave Jamie's relative a mummified
cat's paw, her family has been cursed with bad luck.
Suffering everything from madness to suicide and every kind
of bad luck imaginable, right down to Jamie's finding her
husband in bed with another woman, Jamie has decided to
reverse the curse by returning Craogh Mor to the Munros. Ian Munro has been in a depression ever since the death of
his wife and son. Dearly loving Bridget, he not only lost
his firm, but his best companion has become a bottle. As if
his life isn't bad enough, this American is coming to take
possession of his land! So Ian heads to the airport to pick
this American up. Eventually, the two of them make it to Craogh Mor, even
though they end up walking a part of the way when the truck
breaks down. Jamie can't believe how beautiful the place
is, and just full of antiques. This is when strange things
start happening. In her room, Jamie hears a cat meowing.
When a cat jumps in the middle of her bed with a bloody
front paw, Jamie runs out into the hallway to try and get
someone to help the poor thing, just to be told it's not
real! The cat is a ghost! And this is just the first of the
ghostly visitations. What is the story with the ghost cat? Why does Jamie have
its missing paw? Why is she supposed to reunite the paw
with the cat's remains? Why is the solicitor stalling on
the paperwork so she can turn Craogh Mor back to its
rightful owner? What of the attraction between Jamie and
Ian? Will Ian ever get over the loss of his beloved wife
and son? "CURSE OF THE CAT'S PAW" is a wonderful paranormal romance.
Tracy L. Ranson does a fantastic job of drawing us into the
lives of the characters as an evil plot is revealed. And
the addition of the ghosts just adds to the experience. We
have a wounded hero and heroine, both suffering the end of
a marriage—one though death; the other, through divorce. We
have ghosts, trying to make the two of them act in the way
the ghosts want them to. And underneath it all, we have the
attraction between the two of them. This is another story
you don't want to miss!
Reviewed by Chere Gruver
Posted November 12, 2006
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